811.91293/7–3045: Telegram
The Ambassador in China (Hurley) to the Secretary of State
[Received July 30—2:54 p.m.]
1254. In our 1253, July 30, we quoted a telegram received from Thackrey, Editor and General Manager of the New York Post, in regard to the refusal of the Chinese Government to permit Darrell Berrigan, Pacific Editor of the Post, to enter China.
We have communicated with Chinese Government and, if Department perceives no objection, it is suggested that a reply be sent to Thackrey along following lines:
“Chinese Government official in charge has informed the Embassy at Chungking that Berrigan’s application for admission to China has been rejected, after full consideration, and that the case is closed.”
For the Department’s top secret information, Mr. Hollington Tong, Vice Minister of Information, has informed a member of my staff that Berrigan was consistently unfair and unfriendly to the National Government during his previous stay in China, and that since his return to the United States he had been most unfair in his observations on China. In the interest of freedom of the press all this might be tolerated if it were not for the fact that China is at war and its capital is in the theater of war and the Government has had to fight for its existence while Berrigan was openly trying to destroy the Government. Mr. Tong expressed the opinion that Berrigan’s return to China would not be in the role of a war correspondent, but only to continue his work in further attempts to undermine the National Government.